Kitchen appliances maker Wonderchef Home Appliances Pvt Ltd has raised Rs 150 crore ($20 million) in a new round of funding led by consumer-focused venture capital (VC) firm Sixth Sense Ventures.
FMCG major Godrej’s family office and Malpani Group are among other investors who participated in this transaction. Besides primary infusion, Zurich-headquartered investment firm Capvent made a complete exit from the company. Capvent had invested $10 million in Wondercheg in 2015. The company also counts mid-market private equity fund Amicus Capital as its institutional investor.
VCCircle was the first to report that the celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor-promoted brand is in advanced stage of talks with Sixth Sense Ventures to raise funding at Rs 1,000- Rs 1,500 crore valuation. According to a person familiar with the development, Sixth Sense has invested around $10 million in this round.
Wonderchef will primarily use the capital for strengthening online presence and expanding and deepening distribution network.
“Kitchen is the heart of the home. Kitchen appliances segment in India is expected to grow in double digits driven by growing urbanization, increasing disposable incomes, and changing lifestyle. Relentless focus on quality and consistency has helped us to build a strong brand within a short period of time despite competition from well entrenched traditional players,” said Nikhil Vora, founder at Sixth Sense Ventures.
The home appliances firm was founded in 2009 by Kapoor and Ravi Saxena, an electronics engineer who has worked with brands like Sodexo Vouchers and Gloria Jean’s Coffees.
Wonderchef’s products include non-stick cookware and kitchen appliances such as cold-press juicers, cooktops, ovens, bakeware, mixer-grinders, air-fryers and toasters.
Sixth Sense was founded in 2014 by Nikhil Vora, former managing director and co-head of research at IDFC Securities. He was also an early investor in the Paytm parent One97 Communications Ltd, and walked away with a 75-fold gain on the investment by selling his stake to Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.
Earlier in the day, VCCircle reported that Sixth Sense Ventures has invested in fashion jewellery startup GIVA.
Last month, the investment firm put around $7 million in pet care startup Dogsee Chew. Earlier, in the same month, VCCircle reported that Sixth Sense Ventures is set to close its third fund at Rs 2,300- 2,400 crore ($309-323 million), which is at least 60% higher than the initial target. It is also one of the largest domestic funds raised by any Indian venture capital (VC) fund.
In July, Sixth Sense Ventures invested in plant-based meat company GoodDot Foods Pvt Ltd. Its investments in Veeba Foods, Soothe Healthcare (Paree), LEAP India, Fullife, and Eupheus Learning are some examples of the firm’s successful bets over the years.
Not too much activity has been reported in the kitchen appliances segment in the past few years.
Earlier this year, home appliances brand Lifelong India Online was reported to be in discussions with a few homegrown private equity firms to raise its Series B round of funding. Later it also reached out to US-based funds.
In February, Stove Kraft Ltd made its debut on the stock market. It is backed by Sequoia Capital.
In October 2019, Fairwinds Private Equity, formerly known as Reliance Equity Advisors, exited Chennai-based Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliances Ltd with a haircut.
In 2018, home appliances manufacturer Whirlpool of India said it would buy a 49% stake in kitchen equipment maker Elica PB India Pvt Ltd for around Rs 162 crore.